Road safety campaigners hope a planning exhibition this weekend for 12 new houses and a pedestrian crossing in Corston will ease some of their concerns.

A pre-planning exhibition takes place on Saturday for new homes at Southside Farm and a crossing thought to be worth between £60,000 and £100,000.

The draft plans, which include provisions for the new pedestrian crossing, could not come sooner for those hoping to slow down traffic through the area, particularly after another accident in which a car hit a garden wall in the early hours of Sunday.

With 90 children living in the village, members of the Corston Road Safety Group have grown increasingly concerned about the volume and speed of traffic through the area, particularly at times when children are crossing the road to catch the school bus.

Edelgard Chivers, a member of the road safety group and a coordinator of the local speed watch, has a ten-year-old daughter who is due to go to Malmesbury Secondary School in September and will be crossing the road each day to catch the bus.

“It will be fantastic if a crossing goes in,” she said.

“The road is a terrible worry. The speed of traffic is a big issue here so we really do need to slow it down.

“As a speed watch coordinator I have caught people doing 50mph so it’s a huge issue.

“At the Police Safety Forum they said that Corston is by far the worst for speeding traffic in the area.”

The particularly dangerous times are at 8.30am when children are catching the school bus, and after school when the young ones are on their way home, but it is also an issue for the more elderly residents of the village.

The exhibition for the proposed development has been organised by Fowler Architecture and Planning and will take place on Saturday at Southside Farm between 10am and 2pm.

Mrs Chivers added: “In terms of the housing then I think it is fine; we’ve got derelict animal sheds so new houses would be nicer.

“There will of course be people who overlook the new properties that are not going to be happy about it I would think.”

On February 11, the Community Area Transport Group will meet to assess the safety of putting a crossing along the main road through the village, which campaigners have already approached Wiltshire Council about.

If a pelican crossing, or similar, is deemed unsafe then Section 106 planning gain money from any approved development in the village could go towards better road signage or to lower speeds before approaching the village.

Comments (3)

Who would have thought that houses next to a road would have traffic going through it.

These busybody speed campaigners are a nuisance.

Last thing it needs is a crossing holding up traffic. Most people drive respectfully through there abiding to the 30 Limit.

The women mentioned in this article is a busybody and her thoughts are not to be entertained.

Who would have thought that houses next to a road would have traffic going through it.
These busybody speed campaigners are a nuisance.
Last thing it needs is a crossing holding up traffic. Most people drive respectfully through there abiding to the 30 Limit.
The women mentioned in this article is a busybody and her thoughts are not to be entertained.anonmattyt

Corston needs a by-pass, not more speed restrictions. It's ridiculous to have a major route from the M4 to the Cotswolds passing through these little villages. And Corston is surrounded by fields, not by listed buildings or high cliffs.

Corston needs a by-pass, not more speed restrictions. It's ridiculous to have a major route from the M4 to the Cotswolds passing through these little villages. And Corston is surrounded by fields, not by listed buildings or high cliffs.Harry_Collier

anonmattyt wrote:
Who would have thought that houses next to a road would have traffic going through it.

These busybody speed campaigners are a nuisance.

Last thing it needs is a crossing holding up traffic. Most people drive respectfully through there abiding to the 30 Limit.

The women mentioned in this article is a busybody and her thoughts are not to be entertained.

How rude -Busy body? The lady mentioned in this article is a fine upstanding citizen of Corston.

I can assure you most people don't drive through Corston at 30mph , this is why measures need to be taken to ensure safety to all residents.

[quote][p][bold]anonmattyt[/bold] wrote:
Who would have thought that houses next to a road would have traffic going through it.
These busybody speed campaigners are a nuisance.
Last thing it needs is a crossing holding up traffic. Most people drive respectfully through there abiding to the 30 Limit.
The women mentioned in this article is a busybody and her thoughts are not to be entertained.[/p][/quote]How rude -Busy body? The lady mentioned in this article is a fine upstanding citizen of Corston.
I can assure you most people don't drive through Corston at 30mph , this is why measures need to be taken to ensure safety to all residents.Guanyin